Welcome to this edition of the ISLAND Project newsletter.  I am Dr Adam Kane, Southern Project Officer for ISLAND and the voice (and creator) of the "What is ISLAND" video, below.  This video explains what the ISLAND Project is, what we aim to achieve, and how you and thousands of Tasmanians are helping dementia prevention research.  Feel free to share the link to this video with your family and friends.

In this edition, we have included community activities you might be interested in exploring.  It's great to see so much on offer, with a health and well-being focus that can help to address the risk factors for dementia.  June 21 to June 30 is World Wellbeing Week, so there a lots of activities and information sessions scheduled in communities across Tasmania.

While we are working behind the scenes on a number of new research activities for you to try in coming months, the ISLAND Project team are out and about in the community promoting the project and building awareness about dementia prevention.

Thank you for participating in our research and making a difference.

Check out our video - What is the ISLAND Project

Check out our video explaining the ISLAND Project. Please consider sharing this with your family and friends to help us spread the word about dementia risk reduction. Happy viewing!

Bushfires, Stress and Dementia - Free Webinar

Can bushfires and other stressful experiences increase our dementia risk? How can we turn challenging experiences into opportunities for growth?

If you are interested in these questions, you may like to join us for our webinar on 21st June at 12:30pm. Dr Duncan Sinclair and Dr Penelope Jones from the ISLAND Resilience Initiative will discuss how bushfires and stress impact our brains as we get older, and will explore ways you can begin to build your resilience.

Register here

Do you live in the beautiful Huon Valley? Come along to our Q&A session.

The ISLAND Project and Huon Valley Council are running an information and question and answer session in Huonville on Wednesday 23rd June starting at 6pm.

Come along and hear Professor James Vickers and Dr Larissa Bartlett talk about the ISLAND Project, the dementia risk profile in the Huon Valley and take the opportunity to raise your ideas about how our community can work together to reduce dementia risk across the municipality.

Please help us make contact with as many residents as possible by telling your neighbours, family and friends about this event. We hope to meet lots more of our fellow Tasmanians on 22nd June.

You can register at island@dementia.utas.edu.au or by calling 6226 4790.

Health Pit Stop - Men's Health Week

You are invited to join us for a Health Pit Stop as part of Men’s Health Week 2021, June 14 – 18. Come along for free information and advice on a variety of health concerns, including hearing, dementia, and diabetes. The dates and locations of the Health Pit Stops in Southern Tasmania are:

•  The Spring Bay Community Shed in Triabunna on Wednesday the 16th  of June from 10am – 3pm.
•  The Huonville Men’s Shed in Huonville on Friday the 18th of June from 9:30am – 2pm

 A great opportunity to take a positive step in your personal health journey, and make new friends in the community.

Recruiting for members on the Ethics Committees

Do you want to be more involved in research in Tasmania?  There are positions available for new members on the Tasmanian Animal Ethics Committee (AEC) and the Tasmanian Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC). 

The AEC oversees the care and use of animals in research and teaching at the University of Tasmania, and, ensures all animal care and use is done in accordance with the Australian Code for the care and use of animals for scientific purposes.  The position available would suit a layperson, someone who has never been involved in research or teachings of this type (in employment or education) and can bring a completely independent view to the Committee.

The HREC reviews health, medical and social science human research proposals, ensuring research has merit and reflects the ethical values of justice, beneficence and respect for all humans and is acceptable to the Australian community.  The position available is for a pastoral carer.

Both roles involve one to two meetings per month of approximately 2 hours duration plus several hours preparation (reading and reviewing applications).

If you are interested or would like to know more, please contact Ella 6226 8349 or via email:  (AEC) animal.ethics@utas.edu.au  (HREC) human ethics@utas.edu.au

The University of Tasmania received funding from the Australian Government. Views and conclusions expressed in this publication are those of its authors, and may not be the same as those held by the Department of Health.

CRICOS Provider Code: 00586B | ABN 30 764 374 782